Streamlining of state projects sought

State senators will consider streamlining permits and procurement to help unleash $500 million worth of bond-financed state construction to tackle repair and maintenance backlogs and stimulate the economy.

The money would be directed at deferred maintenance at public schools, hospitals and other state buildings, along with alternative-energy upgrades. Senators will discuss at a Senate Ways and Means Committee hearing on Friday whether to exempt the projects from county permits provided that the construction meets federal, state and county code. They may also expand the threshold for projects that qualify for a more relaxed procurement process to $1 million — up from $250,000 — but would funnel the projects through an electronic procurement system that offers public transparency.

The aggressive investment in state construction is the Senate’s flagship legislation this session — senators symbolically designated it Senate Bill 2012 — and senators hope that private-sector trade unions, contractors and business interests will back the proposal.

The state House and Gov. Neil Abercrombie have also shown interest in streamlining state construction as an economic stimulus tool. The dash toward streamlining has given some regulators and environmentalists pause, however, since permitting and procurement requirements are safeguards against substandard work and favoritism.

"We wanted to focus on deferred maintenance. These are projects that have been on the books for a long time," said Sen. Michelle Kidani (D, Mililani-Waipio), who oversees state construction spending for the Senate. "This was, we thought, the best and quickest way to not only get the best bang for our buck, because the economy is down and we can get more projects out there for our money, but also to put our people back to work."

Senators have described the procurement process as lengthy and complicated, which can add considerable time to completing state construction. Their objective is to address smaller repairs and upgrades, such as painting a school or rewiring the electricity in a hospital wing, rather than build a new highway or public-housing complex, projects that would demand greater regulatory scrutiny.

Senate Democrats have persuaded the chamber’s sole Republican, Sam Slom (Diamond Head-Hawaii Kai), to sign off on the concept, a rare stroke of bipartisanship on a major initiative.

But Slom said there are legitimate concerns about streamlining state construction. He said it may be preferable to change the law if the requirements are burdensome, rather than exempt certain projects.

"One of their favorite phrases is that it’s ‘a work in progress.’ It’s always a work in progress," Slom said. "I said I would look at it but I will look at it with a jaundiced eye."

Robert Harris, director of the Sierra Club Hawaii chapter, said he recognizes that the Senate is targeting relatively minor construction projects but believes the exemptions may be too broad.

"Governmental oversight is intended to try and prevent bad projects from occurring. This may be too big of a blanket sweep, with a massive amount of money potentially," he said.

In the House, lawmakers have presented a variety of options on state construction, rather than uniting early behind a single bill.

One bill would make it a state policy goal to complete 10 major projects over the next decade, including airports and harbors modernization, the Honolulu rail system, the Thirty Meter Telescope on Mauna Kea, a community college in west Hawaii County and the state’s largest high-rise condominium in Kakaako.

Rep. Kyle Yamashita (D, Pukalani-Ulupalakua), who oversees state construction spending for the House, said a model for lawmakers could be a bill that became law two years ago that exempted the University of Hawaii from certain provisions of the procurement code.

"It’s a bunch of bills. It’s all the possibilities," he said. "And then the process will kind of weed out which ones are possible."

House Speaker Calvin Say (D, St. Louis Heights-Wilhelmina Rise-Palolo Valley) has suggested temporarily exempting some state and county construction projects from the state’s environmental review law, a proposal that has alarmed some regulators and environmentalists.

Gary Hooser, director of the state Office of Environmental Quality Control, called that option "ill-advised and unnecessary."

Hooser, a former Kauai state senator, said it might be reasonable to streamline permitting and procurement for smaller state construction projects, but he recommended caution.

"Repair and maintenance really depends on the scale," he said. "All repair and maintenance projects are not alike."